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I've never swum competitively before, but I do love to swim. :] The beach is probably one of my favourite places in the world.

I am . . . not doing anything. I should study, but blehhh. Writing and reading and wasting time are so much more interesting than studying. I'm also simultaneously trying not think about the next few months and imagining myself in them. I am so going to miss being lazy.

So, since many of our more tenured members seem to be leaving us, that leaves SPEW with a small contingent, yet the remaining members are ones I know to be dedicated to the group. That being said, I propose a few TQs:

What is it that drew you to SPEW?

What sort of feelings do you get when you receive the Author Response emails?

When you first applied to SPEW, did you think you would ever measure up? How about now?

What is it that drew you to SPEW?
The SHININESS. Er. No, I joined because it looked like such a fun community to be a part of, and I quite liked posting good, critical reviews when all the rest of them on MNFF were one sentence long and full of grammar and spelling errors.

What sort of feelings do you get when you receive the Author Response emails?
Good feelings!

When you first applied to SPEW, did you think you would ever measure up? How about now?
Ha ha ha. When I applied to SPEW, I was deathly terrified I wasn't good enough. And it didn't help that Anna (the SPEW Head before Jenna) took months to reply to my PM because she forgot about it, so I thought I was never going to get in. And being the most senior member of SPEW now feels so strange, because I remember feeling like such a newbie for so long.

I don't know, honestly. It probably was actually the SHININESS. I remember right after I joined the forums and looking through the 'about the forums' pages by Roxy and just wanting to be apart of SPEW from the description. Then I proceeded to stalk it and saw that it was this really awesome group of people and I wanted to be a part of that.

Oh, and I love reviewing. <3

What sort of feelings do you get when you receive the Author Response emails?

Apprehension and excitement. I'm always scared that the author is going to not like my review. >.> But that's my favourite part of reviewing (especially when I get responses like "you rock!" or "you're incredible" or "&hearts; &hearts; &hearts; ..." ). I just love knowing that the author appreciates the time and effort I put into reading and thinking about his/her story.

When you first applied to SPEW, did you think you would ever measure up? How about now?

I applied to SPEW under unusual circumstances. As in, I'd been sent three PMs by current members demanding that I join. So, I was pretty sure I'd get in. >.> In those days, I thought my reviews were pretty fantastic, too. Now, my reviews are better but I know they aren't ~fabulous.

In other news, I just heard that song "Friday" by Rebecca Black (LOL) and walked into a wall. Such is my life.

Bwahaha, Mere, of course your reviews were fantastic! Was I one of those people? I have a feeling I was. I thought I was the only person left who would have been accepted by Anna, but you would have too, right? And the Hannahs ...

But I agree with you on the second question (since I didn't really answer it properly, lol). The thing I love most about reviewing is knowing that the author appreciates what you've taken the time to stay and will (hopefully) implement your suggestions in future writing endeavours. I've gotten so much help with my writing from these boards, so I like being able to contribute the same way.

Originally Posted by Mere

In other news, I just heard that song "Friday" by Rebecca Black (LOL) and walked into a wall. Such is my life.

haha, aw, thanks, Jen! Actually, you were in New Zealand when I applied, but I remember reviewing WWC and in your response(s) you said I should join SPEW. That definitely factored into my decision to apply. Nikki, Tiff, and Britt were the ones who PMed me. And yes, I was accepted by Anna. I still have the PM. >.>

Originally Posted by Jen

I've gotten so much help with my writing from these boards, so I like being able to contribute the same way.

EXACTLY!

Originally Posted by Jen

This song makes my brain hurt.

lol. I think it's really terrible and hilarious. I think what's even more hilarious is the way it's become The Biggest Thing in pop culture atm. (at least, from what I can tell on facebook . . .)

I think it's important to choose a story that I'll enjoy. If there is a story for which I can't offer more positive reinforcement than crit, then I won't review... not even for recreational reading. I know how much time and effort goes into writing a fic, and it's not up to me to shoot down more ideas than I support. Sure, sometimes an author needs a nudge in the right direction (Merlin knows I did when I was a fledgling writer), but it makes me feel uber bad when I try to say as nicely as possible that I hated the story and found many faults in it. I'd rather write glowing reviews, heaping praise upon praise for a job well done.

Frankly, being nice when the reading was good is far simpler than fishing for compliments when I don't really see many redeeming qualities for my taste. I am lazy and therefore favour the easier option.

Ebil Lieutenant
RavenclawEnemies of the Heir, Beware...of the Petrified Cat!

Join Date

Aug 2010

Location

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Posts

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How do you choose the stories you review?

Ooh, this looks like an interesting TQ. Well, what I do -- and this is a practice I'm sure is shared by quite a few fanfic writers -- is, if any of my reviewers have written a story/stories, then normally I would read and review at least one of them. It's partly to say thank you but also to see what kind of stuff my reviewers like writing if they actually bothered reading and reviewing any of my stories. Sadly, most of my one-liner reviews I receive come from people who haven't, as yet, written anything. Still, the fact remains that I do usually take time in looking at my reviewers' profiles.

As well as that, I'm always looking at the Most Recent list for interesting stories to read and review. And if the summary's promising but the story doesn't quite match up to my expectations, I do tell the author that, in a nice way, tactfully of course. Even if, in my head, the crit outweighs the praise, I always try to even it up (even going as far as rereading the story again for something good to say) just to be nice.

But, on that subject, the only time I could ever give more criticism than praise is when I'm beta'ing, because I am a brutally honest beta. Interesting question, Jess!

And now, my turn for a TQ:

I've noticed that some authors on MNFF only respond to some reviews, while others respond to all, and some don't reply to any of them. What do you think of that? Do you reply to all your reviews? Why or why not?

I've noticed that some authors on MNFF only respond to some reviews, while others respond to all, and some don't reply to any of them. What do you think of that? Do you reply to all your reviews? Why or why not?

I don't really see the point of NOT responding to reviews. Sure, if it's a 'gud stry kthxbai' review, the lack of response is generally due to the lack of anything to which one can reply. Perhaps some lack of replies happen when one doesn't subscribe to email notifications or has turned them off due to lack of continued interest in the site.

But I respond to all of my reviews. I want my readers to know I appreciate their continued support, because I frankly want them to read more of my stories. I love getting reviews, and I love my reviewers... even the whiny ones who complain when I do something they don't agree with (*coughharryginnyshipperscough*). At least they care enough about my work to say so.